Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arraigned two British nationals, James Nolan and Adam Quinn (at large), before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja.
They were charged on Monday for alleged complicity in the controversial $9.6bn arbitral award to Process and Industrial Development Ltd., by a United Kingdom commercial court.
The EFCC Spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren, in a statement issued in Abuja, said the defendants, both directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-Financial Institution and ICIL Limited, were charged with 16 counts bordering on money laundering.
Count one of the charges read, “That you James Richard Nolan and Adam Quinn(at large), sometime in December 2013 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, being Directors of Goidel Resources Limited, a Designated Non-Financial Institution aided the said company in failing to comply with the requirement of submitting to the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investments a declaration of the activities as specified under section 5 (1)(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011, as amended and you thereby committed an offence contrary to section 18(a) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011, as amended and punishable under section 16 (2b) of the same Act.”
The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges and made oral application for bail.
Meanwhile, Justice Abang struck out count nine out of the 16 charges on the grounds that “a court of law has no jurisdiction to entertain a charge against a non-registered person.”
However, the court remanded Nolan in prison custody pending the consideration of his bail application.
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